Ndume Asks President Tinubu To Withdraw Ambassadorial List

By Akinwale Kasali

Senator Ali Ndume, former Senate Leader  has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to withdraw the list of Ambassadorial Nominees he sent to the Senate for screening and confirmation.

Senator Ndume said this in Abuja where he explained that his appeal was based on his observation that the list, as presently composed, breaches the Federal Character principle enshrined in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).

Speaking further, Ndume said his argument stemmed from the fact that while certain States have three and four nominees each, Gombe, for example, has no representation.

It also noted that the only nominee from Yobe, Senator Adamu Garba Talba, died last July.

He added that the entire Northeast has Seven nominees on the list, while the Southwest zone alone has 15 nominees.

The Northwest and Southeast have 13 and 9, respectively.

North Central has 10 nominees in the list of career and non-career ambassadorial nominees, while South South accounts for 12 nominees.

The Borno South Senatorial District’s representative explained that the list of nominees contravened Section 14(3) of the Nigerian Constitution, which states: “The composition of the Government of the Federation or any of its agencies and the conduct of its affairs shall be carried out in such a manner as to reflect the federal character of Nigeria and the need to promote national unity, and also to command national loyalty, thereby ensuring that there shall be no predominance of persons from a few states or from a few ethnic or other sectional groups in that government or in any of its agencies.”

Ndume said: “My sincere appeal to President Tinubu is to withdraw this list. At this critical time in the life of his administration, he should avoid missteps that would endanger national unity and promote ethnic distrust.

“I know him to be a cosmopolitan leader who is at home with every segment and stakeholder in the country.

“He should withdraw that list and present a fresh set of nominees that will align with the spirit of the Constitution on the Federal Character Principle that the government’s structure and operations must represent the diverse states and peoples of Nigeria.”